Post by ferryfast admin on Sept 17, 2011 15:40:42 GMT -5
Officials toast Austal's first JHSV, Spearhead, at christening ceremony
Updated: Saturday, September 17, 2011, 2:09 PM
Dan Murtaugh, Press-Register
blog.al.com/live/2011/09/officials_toast_austals_first.html
MOBILE, Alabama -- Austal USA’s first joint high-speed vessel is a box, U.S. Navy Rear Adm. David Lewis said today.
He couldn’t have paid it a bigger complement.
Lewis and several hundred more officials with the Navy, Austal and shipbuilding community descended upon the Arthur Outlaw Mobile Convention Center to christen the ship, named Spearhead.
JHSVs are 338 feet long, weigh 727 tons, can carry up to 600 tons of cargo and travel at an average speed of about 35 knots, or 40 mph. The ships will be used to move troops, weapons and cargo. Austal USA President Joe Rella refers to them as the pickup trucks of the sea.
Lewis, the Navy’s program executive officer for shipbuilding, said the JHSV reminds him of a large Christmas present he once bought for his children. He said that a few hours after being opened, the present sat unused in the corner of the room while his children were playing with the box, imagining it to be a castle, rocket ship and other things.
“Spearhead is a big, fast box,” Lewis said. “It’s capabilities are limited only by the imaginations of the ship operators.”
The ship was christened by Kenneth Wahlman, a retired chief warrant officer for the U.S. Army, and his daughter, Catherine.
“May God bless this ship and all who sail with her,” Wahlman said as his daughter smashed a bottle of champagne against the hull of the ship.
Spearhead is scheduled to be delivered to the Navy early next year. The Navy has contracted Austal to build six more, and has options for an additional three. The contract has a total value of $1.6 billion.
The Navy’s shipbuilding plan calls for 23 total JHSVs. Austal would likely have an advantage for future contracts if the Navy is satisfied with its work. Rella also said Saturday that he believes other countries will want to buy JHSVs after they see the U.S. Navy operate them.
“It will be a workhorse and a vital component for the American arsenal, he said. “Navies throughout the world will be eager to adopt it.”
In addition to JHSVs, Austal also has a contract to build up to littoral combat ships for the Navy, worth $3.6 billion if all options are executed. Austal is already Mobile’s largest industrial employer with more than 2,100 workers, and company officials expect to nearly double the workforce to 4,000 in 2013.
Updated: Saturday, September 17, 2011, 2:09 PM
Dan Murtaugh, Press-Register
blog.al.com/live/2011/09/officials_toast_austals_first.html
MOBILE, Alabama -- Austal USA’s first joint high-speed vessel is a box, U.S. Navy Rear Adm. David Lewis said today.
He couldn’t have paid it a bigger complement.
Lewis and several hundred more officials with the Navy, Austal and shipbuilding community descended upon the Arthur Outlaw Mobile Convention Center to christen the ship, named Spearhead.
JHSVs are 338 feet long, weigh 727 tons, can carry up to 600 tons of cargo and travel at an average speed of about 35 knots, or 40 mph. The ships will be used to move troops, weapons and cargo. Austal USA President Joe Rella refers to them as the pickup trucks of the sea.
Lewis, the Navy’s program executive officer for shipbuilding, said the JHSV reminds him of a large Christmas present he once bought for his children. He said that a few hours after being opened, the present sat unused in the corner of the room while his children were playing with the box, imagining it to be a castle, rocket ship and other things.
“Spearhead is a big, fast box,” Lewis said. “It’s capabilities are limited only by the imaginations of the ship operators.”
The ship was christened by Kenneth Wahlman, a retired chief warrant officer for the U.S. Army, and his daughter, Catherine.
“May God bless this ship and all who sail with her,” Wahlman said as his daughter smashed a bottle of champagne against the hull of the ship.
Spearhead is scheduled to be delivered to the Navy early next year. The Navy has contracted Austal to build six more, and has options for an additional three. The contract has a total value of $1.6 billion.
The Navy’s shipbuilding plan calls for 23 total JHSVs. Austal would likely have an advantage for future contracts if the Navy is satisfied with its work. Rella also said Saturday that he believes other countries will want to buy JHSVs after they see the U.S. Navy operate them.
“It will be a workhorse and a vital component for the American arsenal, he said. “Navies throughout the world will be eager to adopt it.”
In addition to JHSVs, Austal also has a contract to build up to littoral combat ships for the Navy, worth $3.6 billion if all options are executed. Austal is already Mobile’s largest industrial employer with more than 2,100 workers, and company officials expect to nearly double the workforce to 4,000 in 2013.